Let’s face it – leaking showers are bad for business. If you’re a homebuilder or remodeler, leaking showers can be expensive and time-consuming to fix. Furthermore, repeated mistakes can be harmful to a contractor’s reputation. Unfortunately, leaking showers are not always the fault of the builder. Even when proper steps are followed – including application of the membrane, tiling, sealing with silicon and screen fitment – contractors have noticed leaks occur. The reason is that some products contain defects that cause them to leak under particular circumstances or break their seal over time. Thus, the quality of shower waterproofing products is important in determining how a seal will perform under regular use.

Showers are used on a daily basis. In homes with multiple family members, they can be used many times a day. Thus, it is important that the shower floor waterproofing system can handle the constant flow of water. Inferior shower waterproofing products that rely wholly on a silicon join can be unreliable in the long run. Silicon degrades over time, which can diminish the integrity of a seal and allow water to leak out. A high-quality shower waterproofing system like the Waterstop Streamline, on the other hand, does not rely on silicon to keep the enclosure sealed.

Industry Need for Leak Free Showers

Often times, rebated or flow-through showers rely on a silicon seal for waterproofing. Thus, being prone to time-induced silicon failure, these showers are capable of leaking after an amount of time. Even while silicon is intact, however, water can sometimes escape between the tiles and membrane. Often, grout used between tiles is porous and thus allows trace amounts of water to seep through it. Over time this water can build and due to cycles of hot and cold, expand and contract, effectively “pumping” the water around. If this occurs in a flat shower, water can easily be pumped out the enclosure. But even if there is an incline or hob, the pump can potentially be forceful enough to travel up an incline to escape the enclosure.

Contractors installing these systems noticed a large number of call-backs to fix leaking showers, often while the products were still under warranty. Thus, an industry need for a more effective product was born. Engineers at Gleda teamed up with numerous trade experts to scope out the problem, find a solution and design an ideal product. A number of design parameters were set, and after numerous prototypes, testing, refinement and retesting, the Waterstop Streamline was complete.

The premier shower waterproofing product attaches the membrane directly to the screen and incorporates a failsafe method to prevent leaking in case of silicon failure. Thus both criteria were met to solve known defects in other models. Furthermore, with input provided from tillers, waterproofers, screen fitters and more, Gleda was able to include a template with the Waterstop Streamline to ensure fall to waste and make screen fitment simple. Understanding the needs of those involved in shower installation, the Wasterstop Streamline was defined for maximum adaptability across bathroom designs and price points.